ASU gets $4.3 million to study, improve solar panel technology
Jul 21, 2017, 4:54 AM
(AP Photo/John Locher, file)
PHOENIX — Researchers at Arizona State University have received $4.3 million in federal grant money to study and improve solar panel technology.
One solar project ASU was working on would develop a cell that incorporates higher voltage and lower current than existing technology in a single silicon wafer. Another project was finding out how to produce solar cells with less waste.
“This is a new direction for the Department of Energy,” Christiana Honsberg, an electrical engineering professor at ASU, said.
The Department of Energy’s SunShot Initiative that was launched six years ago sought to make solar energy sources more cost competitive. The ultimate goal is 6 cents per kilowatt-hour by 2020 and 3 cents per kilowatt-hour by 2030.
“As the price of [solar devices] has come down, there’s been increasing focus on reducing the cost of the [solar cell] components as well,” Honsberg said. “There aren’t that many programs that address this.
“It’ll enable us to give our students extensive experience in research, in an area that’s extremely important to industry.”
A statement from the department said funded projects would have “substantial federal oversight and consist of go/no go technical benchmarks which reinforce attentive project stewardship.”
The other projects would also improve the life span of solar devices and increase the warranty periods for cells.